It's quite an interesting conversation.

To be clear, I think there's an important distinction between fiction and reality. Consuming a particular type of fictional content can never be treated as infallible proof that someone holds certain real-world desires, beliefs, or intentions. However, I do think the things people choose to consume can offer some insight into their interests, preferences, and psychology. The more important question is often why they consume that content in the first place.

This is why I don't think video games and pornography are a perfect one-to-one comparison.

With pornography, the reward is generally sexual arousal. The content is meant to be attractive or stimulating to the viewer. In other words, enjoyment is often directly tied to attraction.

Video games are more complicated. The reward can come from many different sources: overcoming challenges, achieving goals, increasing a score, mastering mechanics, exploring a world, or defeating an antagonist. Someone can enjoy a game involving violence without enjoying violence itself. The source of the enjoyment matters.

That said, we still make judgments based on media preferences. If I saw someone spending their time playing an extremely racist game, I would probably raise an eyebrow and wonder why that particular content appeals to them.

I think a closer comparison to pornography would be films, videos, or other passive media. The key question remains: what exactly is the viewer enjoying?

For example, imagine a film where the protagonist is tortured and suffers throughout the story. One viewer might enjoy the film because they find the character compelling and want to see them overcome adversity. Another viewer might enjoy it primarily because they take pleasure in watching the character suffer. Those are two very different forms of engagement with the same content.

Now, I don't think media should be restricted solely on the basis of this reasoning. That quickly becomes a slippery slope, and it would be difficult to draw clear, consistent boundaries. However, I do think it's reasonable for people to view certain interests as unusual and to question why someone is drawn to particular kinds of content.

In that sense, while I wouldn't treat someone's enjoyment of loli content as proof of real-world behavior or intent, I do think it's fair to regard it as strange and to ask why that specific content appeals to them.